Questions About Birth Control

A.,
I started taking loestrin FE after both of my kids at about 3 months. Before that the mini-pill works well as long as you are nursing exclusivly. if you are not I owuld HIGHLY reccomened a low estrogin pill.

I have steered clear of IUD's due to excess bleeding after birth that they can cause.

Good Luck and Congrats on the twins!

Has your husband considered getting a vasectomy? If the concern is the genetic disorder he could pass on, and you both don't want more children, I believe he should take on the responsibility of preventing that from happening. Not that I don't believe in women taking birth control, but the risks are greater in women for one. Besides, no birth control is 100% effective. Also, if you do the math, it is way less expensive for him to get a vasectomy than it is to pay for birth control until you go through "the big change". For us, there was not even a question about what we should do for birth control. My husband "manned up" and volunteered to take care of it. He didn't want me to have to be on any weird medications (that may or may not work) and he didn't want me to have to go through getting my tubes tied. That was 4 years ago, and I heard the procedure is even better now. My husband said it really wasn't that bad. He just had to be careful when our oldest (boy) wanted to play for about a week. If I remember correctly, he had the procedure (in and out in about an hour)done on a Friday, and he was back to work on Monday. I gotta tell you, as silly as it sounds, he is my hero for doing this. I don't have to worry about a pill, a shot, or anything like that, and after 4 yrs we are never worried about being surprised with another baby.

i see you have a lot of responses, but i can't read them all right now. so just in case no one has mentioned it yet, be aware that the mini pill is progestin-only, which makes it a depressant. so if you have any history of depression, i would avoid it. or if you choose to take it, watch yourself carefully for mood changes. it can cause a person's mental state to change drastically and dangerously.

you could always do a combination of birth controls such as the pill safe for breastfeeding combined with condoms.

Congratulations on your twins! :) I used the mini pill after I had my second daughter and 9 months later, I got pregnant (I was a faithful taker- I even set the alarm clock on my phone to make sure I took it on the exact minute). After I had my son, I got the Mirena IUD, since the mini pill obviously didn't work for me. So far, it has been working very well- no more babies. It caused a lot of cramping when it was first put in (to the point I was nauseous), but other than that has been nice. It's also nice not to have to worry about taking the pill every single night- I imagine with twins, that will be nice. Good luck. I'm glad you are discussing with your doctor the different options.

Fertility Awareness Method (not to be confused with the Rhythm Method) is very effective if done correctly, as well as very safe. By avoiding intercourse on days with any sign of ovulation, there would be a 0% chance of pregnancy. You can read all the details in Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler. Taking your temperature might be complicated by waking up during the night, but it's really cervical fluid that predicts ovulation.

Hi A.,

I too have boy/girl twins! They are a delight - congrats!
I'd recommend an IUD. Then you don't take the chance of contaminating your breast milk. Best of luck!

I am on Implanon and love it (it's a rod implanted in your arm, and works for 3 years.) It is very effective. However, some women experience nearly constant spotting/bleeding on it (I have not, fortunately). It is safe for breastfeeding. Congratulations on your babies, and good luck!

The best book (IMHO) for learning about drug-free birth control is Take Charge of Your Fertility, by Toni Wechsler:
http://www.amazon.com/Taking-Charge-Your-Fertility-Annive...
I used this method in the past with great success, both for conceiving and not conceiving. My doctors have also put me on the mini pill while nursing, which, as long as you nurse consistently and fairly often, works fine. Good luck!

My doctor has always put me on the mini pill, however you have to take it the same time (within an hour) every day for it to be 99% effective. It is safe for nursing and I have used it after both my daughters. Be sure to speak with your doctor. Congratulations on the birth of your twins!

I had awesome success w/an IUD. I also have twins followed by 2 singletons. The IUD was a one time deal, didn't have to remember to take pills w/kids keeping me busy & when we were ready to try for my 4th I just got it removed & that was that.

I asked the same question, and although IUDs are supposed to prevent fertilization, it's not fool proof and it is possible to still get a fertilized egg that would not be able to implant, therefore being like an abortion. I chose against it for that reason. We went the more permanent root, instead, so I have no recommendations. Sorry.